Spotlight: Jack Taylor

Jack Taylor ’15, a transfer from UW-Lacrosse, plays point guard on the basketball team. “[Taylor is] the real deal … a very special player who just might be the next leading scorer in the nation,” said Grinnell associate head coach, David Arseneault ’09, in an interview on the Grinnell College Athletics website. The Pioneers open the season tonight in Waverly, Iowa against Rockford College.

What’s your major?

Biochemistry.

Where are you from?

Black River Falls, Wisconsin. It’s a town of about four thousand people.

What led you to transfer to Grinnell?

I played college basketball last year for UW-Lacrosse …it wasn’t as fun as I’d thought it would be. One of my best friends in high school was Aaron Epps [’11], who played basketball here, and he’d talked a lot to me about Grinnell and how fun it was to play basketball here in The System and I wanted to experience that.

What’s your favorite class here?

Intro to Christianity and Judaism, taught by Professor Roberts. I’m a follower of Jesus Christ and learning about the history of Christianity as a religion is really interesting to me.

Apart from basketball, what do you enjoy doing at Grinnell?

I like hanging out with friends. We play a lot of ping-pong and Super Smash Brothers.

How’s the team looking so far this season?

We have high expectations going into the year. We are looking to build on their success last year … they had a good year last year.

When is your next home game?

Faith Baptist. Tuesday, November 20th, at 7 p.m. in Darby.

What has been your biggest adjustment to Grinnell?

Probably study habits. Managing my time well because the workload here is demanding.

What’s your ideal D-hall meal?

My go-to move is the stir-fry.

If you had to pick another sport to play, what would you choose?

I ran a little track and cross-country in high school, but I would choose Dag because I think I would be good at the bow and arrow. I could be the Robin Hood of the Dag team.